5 Ways to Inspire Yourself to Practice Guitar

The majority of people who take up guitar do so because they were inspired by a guitarist, band or song. When they made their guitar purchase they were excited and imagined themselves practicing everyday but somewhere along the way the fire went out. Guitar practice began to feel like a chore. Even when they could find a spare 30 minutes they no longer felt inspired. For most guitar students this is where the story ends but it doesn’t have to be that way. Your desire to play guitar has not disappear. In nearly every case you will regret not sticking with it. The real question is ‘How do you stay inspired to practice? Here are my 5 tips;

1. Commit to daily practice

You might be saying that committing to daily practice is hardly inspirational but I can assure you the more consistent you are the more inspired you will become. You will feel yourself improving and even the smallest incremental improvements are inspiring.

2. Listen to more guitar music

Think of your brain as having several different personalities all with their own agendas and all competing for your attention. Listening to guitar music is likely what inspired you in the first place so listening to inspiring guitar music will switch on that part of the brain that wants to practice guitar.

3. Learn with a friend

When you share the experience of learning guitar its not only more fun but you have someone who will keep guitar top of mind. They say the biggest challenge with most things is keeping it front and centre. If you are learning by yourself its easy to forget to practice but if you and a friend are learning together it will come to mind a lot more often.

4. Check out guitar performances

When I attend a performance from a favourite guitarist or guitar band I can confidently say my inspiration to practice is at its highest. I have at times come home from watching concerts at 1AM and sat up all night practicing. Seeing a good concert even once every few months is enough to keep most people inspired.

5. Learn with a teacher

I can say without a doubt that my first guitar teacher made the difference between failure and success. He kept me inspired from week to week often when I was ready to throw in the towel. I remember quite clearly how I felt after each lesson. Some weeks I would go in feeling frustrated and ready to quit but by the end of the lesson I was pumped. If you seriously want to stay inspired find a great teacher.

Motivation to learn depends on your sense of achievement. Short-term goals generally don’t take as long to complete, which allows you to feel a sense of accomplishment sooner and more often. It’s also important to make sure you organize these goals.